Race 1 Day 31: Wind Returns For Final Push

After a
frustrating 24 hours languishing in a wind hole off the southern coast of
Brazil, most of the Clipper Race fleet is on the move again.

Sanya Serenity Coast remains in first place and whilst
Skipper, Wendy Tuck, is relieved the wind has returned, she knows the path to
Punta del Este remains tricky. She explained: “Well, that was a hard day in the office. It’s
always a bit frustrating when you feel you are taking half a step forward and
ten backwards.

“After this
light patch, we will be under kite again, and then just to make it that bit
more interesting, there will be another little light wind hole waiting for us
just off Punta del Este.”

IMAGE: Fleet positions at time of publishing.

Minus any
mishap, Sanya Serenity Coast is the
favourite to take line honours, and currently has a lead of around 80nM (nautical
miles) on second-placed PSP Logistics,
and around 100nM on GREAT Britain in
third. But, there is a stiff challenge for the overall Atlantic Trade Winds Leg
1 win forming in the shape of Greenings.

Overnight, Greenings made the most of not being
stuck in a wind hole, travelling 86nM. Relief Skipper and Deputy Race Director,
Dan Smith, reports: “We have had a good day avoiding wind holes and have made
good gains on the others. As I write this, we are about to change our watches
over, gybe the boat, and head southwest to Punta del Este. Three days to go if
we avoid those wind holes.”

Morale is high
on PSP Logistics, currently in second
place, though Skipper, Roy Taylor, isn’t getting carried away, saying: “The
game of cat and mouse continues with GREAT
Britain, who has stalked us for the last couple of days. Punta del Este is
getting closer, and it must be fascinating for all the viewers back home. Who
has wind? Who doesn't? When will it arrive? Who will get it first?”

GREAT Britain is currently in third place, but the
fight for the final spot on the podium is brewing, with less than 30nM separating
the team from the seventh placed Garmin.
Skipper of the fourth-placed Qingdao,
Chris Kobusch, says: “Almost the whole Clipper Race fleet is within 40nM of us,
(only Sanya Serenity Coast, Greenings, and Nasdaq are further away), which I think is quite remarkable after
6000nM and more than four weeks of ocean racing.

“With now less
than 500nM to go, and probably all boats heading towards the same waypoint, it
will be a close and exciting race to the finish.”

IMAGE: Crew working hard on Garmin.

HotelPlanner.com, Dare To Lead and Garmin
are currently jostling for position in fifth, sixth and seventh position
respectively and their places are subject to change with the varying winds. Liverpool 2018, meanwhile, remains in
Stealth Mode and is set to reappear on the Race Viewer at 1200 (UTC).

After being a
challenger for a podium place for so long, Unicef
has fallen back to eighth place on the leader board. Skipper, Bob Beggs,
comments: “Getting closer to the finish and dropping many places in just 24
hours is sobering and it’s time to double our focus and effort to regain some
places. We have now climbed out of the wind hole and boat speeds are now back
in double figures.”

Visit Seattle has also tumbled down the standings to
ninth, and in the absence of a spinnaker, Skipper, Nikki Henderson, has asked
people back home to: “Wish us some seriously strong winds from behind, or
moderate ones from in front, so that our wonderful Yankee and Main become far
more efficient than any spinnaker that the rest of the fleet are using.”

There was some
joy for twelfth-placed Nasdaq, who
marked two big milestones overnight; logging 6,000nM and passing the 1,000nM to
go mark.

Most of the
fleet should continue to enjoy decent winds, with the southeast low
disappearing off the weather map. Clipper Race Meteorologist, Simon Rowell,
says the next front will appear over the finish line in the next 24 hours,
though it shouldn’t cause the leading boats too much of a problem, due to the
accompanying south-southeast winds. The teams to the north will need to be on
alert, as the SSE will form part of the next low off the coast of South America
and form a cyclonic patch in the middle, with headwinds behind it.

To stay up to
date with the fleet’s positions keep a close eye on the Clipper Race Viewer.
All positions correct at time of writing.

To read all the
Skipper reports in full, and also read the Crew Diaries for insightful views
into life on board, visit the Clipper Race Team Pages.